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World Travel Airways
''History Founding World Travel was founded in February 1968 in Seattle, Washington, and commenced operations in November 1969. The federal state provided the main part of the start-up capital, which was enough to buy 5 brand new Boeing 707-200s, the first of which was delivered from Everett on the same day the company began operations, received by a large celebration. World Travel Airlines used the jets in the next years mainly to the most famous tourist destinations; In summer, mainly to Palma de Mallorca (Spain) and New York; In winter, to the Canary Islands and Florida (Miami), also departing from other Northwestern airports like Portland, Boise, and Vancouver, to be able to fill the large airplanes. Beginning of ordering of new planes in 1972 In 1972, WTA placed orders for the * Boeing 727-200, * 737-200, * 747-200, * Airbus A300, * and McDonnell Douglas DC-10. The airline received its first 2 727-200 aircraft on the 5th and 23rd of August the following year. The first 737-200 was received in January in 1974, while the first 747-200B was received in July 1974. The first 747-200M was delivered in September 1974 and the first A300 was delivered in March 1975. The first DC-10 was delivered in August 1975. All aircraft were received by a huge ceremony. By January 1977, World Travel was already the biggest airline for charter flights to and from Seattle. In May 1977, they started to expand their services to the Southwestern, Central, and Eastern United States as well as Central Canada and Northern Mexico. In 1985, the airline placed orders for the Boeing 757-200 to replace their Boeing 707, 727, and McDonnell Douglas DC-10 aircraft. The first 757-200 was delivered in June 1986. In 1987, orders were placed for the McDonnell Douglas MD-11, the first of which was received in February 1988. In 1991, the airline commenced vehicle freight operations on board their Boeing 747-200 Combi aircraft. The first vehicle, a 1990 Chevrolet Lumina, was transported aboard Boeing 747 Combi N412WT from Anchorage to Miami on 18 April, 1991. Today, the vehicle manifest ranges from small hybrid cars to trailers and RVs. Financial Issues During the span between 1993 and 2000, the airline was plagued by financial troubles, mostly due to intense competition with more successful airlines such as Orbit and Pacifica. WTA's biggest blow came in 1995 following the crash of one of their 747s in Miami, which claimed the lives of 302 people. After the crash, WTA retired their fleet of 747-200s and replaced them with the more advanced 747-400. In 2001, the airline updated their livery. The new livery consisted of a white fuselage with a dark blue cheatline running down the fuselage, a dark blue stripe on the tail, and "World Travel Airlines" written on the fuselage and tail. That same year, following the resuming of their vehicle operations, the airline began a slow recovery from financial problems. However, due to aggressive pricing policy of airlines like Landmark, Orbit, and Pacifica, World Travel lost many profitable contracts with important tour operators. Finally, in August 2001, due to a tarnished reputation plagued by decreased passenger revenue, Air Datum, one of WTA's major competitors, filed for bankruptcy. World Travel agreed to buy the airline and its investments. This strategy was to buy smaller planes, to be more flexible. The airline completed the merger in February 2002, which was a Milestone for World Travel Airlines. WTA acquired Air Datum's fleet of Boeing 737-400s, 737-500s, 737-700s, and Airbus A320 aircraft. On 1 March, 2002, World Travel placed orders for the Boeing 757-300ER, 767-300ER, and 777-200ER for long-haul routes between the US, Europe, Asia, and Africa. In April 2006, World Travel was able to complete a great business deal with Soar Airlines, which recently cancelled an order for 25 brand-new Boeing 737-800 aircraft, which have since been put into storage. The first 6 aircraft entered Service on 15 September, 2006, which was the beginning of a new era in the history of the airline. Meanwhile, World Travel was finally able to build up a network of connections to smaller airports with lower passenger volume and, at the same time, they could offer feeder services to fill their new 737s. Although short-haul and various seasonal routes are the main operations of the Boeing 737-800 today, some routes include ones flown between the US, Canada, Mexico, and the US Virgin Islands. In February 2007, the airline updated their livery. The airline repainted most of their aircraft with the newly introduced "Discover" livery, which consists of a blue and white fuselage with "World Travel" written above the passenger windows and a blue globe on the tail. This is the airline's main livery, though a handful of aircraft still wear the previous 2000-2006 livery. In July 2009, the airline retired many of their older aircraft such as the Boeing 737-400, 737-500, 767-200, Airbus A300, and McDonnell Douglas MD-11, replacing them with aircraft such as the Boeing 737-800, 757-300ER, 767-300ER, 767-400ER, 777-200ER, Airbus A321, A330, and A340. However, three of the airline's MD-11 aircraft, N502WT, N507WT, and N511WT, were kept operating for a brief period of time; The airline operated the aircraft on a series of throwback heritage flights between US destinations and Canada from March until November 2011. Since then, the MD-11 is no longer a part of the World Travel fleet. In October 2010, WTA began placing orders for the more advanced Airbus A321 and Boeing 737-900. The first of which were received in May and July 2011, respectively. Since 2010, WTA expanded its route network to the whole world and won several awards. In recent years, the airline was praised for the second-highest customer satisfaction rating behind Orbit Airlines. In March 2014, the airline placed orders for the Boeing 737MAX8, Boeing 747-8I, Boeing 787-9, and Airbus A350. The first 3 737MAX8s and the first 2 747-8Is were delivered in January and August 2015, respectively. On 20 July 2014, the airline's CEO´s father withdrew from business and became CEO of American Pacific Airways. Meanwhile, WTA introduced a new strategy for their network, in which Seattle (SEA), San Francisco (SFO), Chicago (ORD), Dallas (DFW), and New York (JFK) would be the most important US hubs in the airline's network, including aircraft maintenance. Only airports with important installations from World Travel Airlines, such as maintenance facilities, will keep operating at smaller airports with a limited quantity of flights, including the possibility to change planes with a boarding pass passengers receive at their airport of origin and automatic luggage transfer to the final destination. Like this, the number of hubs will increase but they will work more efficiently and passengers can choose connections faster than before. Other important destinations will become focus cities, operating only point to point traffic. On May 11, 2017, WTA received its first Airbus A350. 2 weeks later on 25 May, the airline's first Boeing 787-9 was delivered. Each aircraft was received and introduced with a ceremony. Seattle-Tacoma International Airport will remain the official home base of World Travel Airlines, as it is the nearest airport to the headquarters of WTA. Sea-Tac will become the most important hub for continental and some intercontinental flights. There also will be light maintenance work in the existing hangars on the airline's fleet of narrow-body aircraft. Fleet In Operation Former Aircraft 'Accidents and Incidents''' . Category:Airliners